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Lunch in Sololá

The words that come to mind are inexpensive and good. But, before you ask for the photo, the reason I was in Sololá was to see if I could find a less expensive replacement for my camera that died some time between 0730 and 0930 today. I didn’t find the inexpensive camera but I did find the inexpensive lunch.

I tried once before and didn’t find any vegetarian options in Sololá. That time was a Sunday but options didn’t seem much better today in any regular walk in and sit down place. This is not unique to Sololá — it was hard to find vegetarian food in Nicaragua. The basic argument is that if you can afford to eat out you can afford meat.

The closest to a helpful answer was that in one comedor a cucumber salad and beans was suggested. I said “it sounds like it would be better for me to go back to Panajachel” and they agreed. I headed toward the bus but on one side of the park there are a few metal boxes that serve food. That is, the front and part of two sides open up and they put stools under the roof formed by the lift-up sides. I decided to take a chance and picked one right next to the steps down from the park.

The response to my “anything vegetarian” question was eggs, rice and beans. I decided to give it a try. I watched as two eggs got scrambled and fried. She then scooped a lot of beans on the plate and rice topped with tomato sauce. Another woman — the one making the tortillas — brought me four of them right off the griddle.

There was a five gallon jug of something yellow in front of me. I asked and was told fresco de piña. Sounded good even though I had a serious fear that it would be 50% sugar. It was good and not overly sweet. The woman asked me if I liked the lunch and when I said yes, she had a big smile.

I was now ready for the damages. Q12. Sure, we used to be able to get lunch for $1.50 in the US, at least in my lifetime but there are lots of people who haven’t seen that price. I came back to Pana full.